Department of Political Science

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Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Political Science is to enhance student understanding of the U.S. and other regions and countries of the world by providing high quality instruction to our students. Students will become knowledgeable citizens with a global perspective. This is achieved by learning the constitutional foundation, institutional structure, and processes of American government; analyzing organizational and managerial principles of the public sector and evaluating their impact on public policy; analyzing and evaluating the philosophic tradition of political science and the great thinkers; comparing and contrasting governments and political institutions of the world; and analyzing and evaluating the ways in which actors in the international system interact politically, diplomatically, economically, socio-culturally, and militarily.

Student Learning Outcomes

Graduates will be able to:

1. Identify the various subfields of political science and be able to explain how scholars in these subfields study important issues.
2. Identify and describe the key concepts, major events, and famous political figures in American politics, comparative politics, international relations, political theory, and public policy.
3. Demonstrate mastery and deeper understanding of key concepts, theories, and approaches in the subfield of political science in which they concentrated their major studies.
4. Discuss, verbally and in writing, current and past political issues, events, theories, or trends by referencing scholarly work on the topic.
5. Compose and defend their own hypotheses and arguments, using relevant scholarly literature for support.
6. Gather, process, and integrate diverse sources of political information into a single, concise argument.

Programs

• Political Science: Domestic Politics Concentration, B.A.
• Political Science: Global Politics Concentration, B.A.

• American Studies Minor
• Global Studies Minor
• Political Science Minor
• Pre-Law Minor

• American Studies Certificate

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